Shower water-saving device

ABSTRACT

A shower water-saving device with dual functionalities: collecting water from a showerhead and watering household or landscape plants. The device can be used to conveniently catch the leading cold or lukewarm water from the shower head, which would otherwise be wasted, while the person taking the shower is waiting for the water with proper temperature to come and, after collecting the shower water, it can then be easily transformed, by attaching a lid (preferably having a spout) to the top opening of the bucket, into a hand-held watering bucket and be used to water household plants or plants in the garden or on the lawns.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/985,988, filed Nov. 7, 2007, the contents of which are incorporatedherein in its entirely by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a shower-water saving device, more particularlyto a device having dual functions of saving water and watering plants.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Certain areas in the world are facing a serious problem of watershortage. Yet, even under such circumstance, there exists certainpractice which leads to fresh water being wasted. For example, whentaking a shower, a significant amount of cold or lukewarm water iswasted while the person who takes the shower is waiting for the water ofa suitable temperature.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide a devicewith dual functionalities: collecting water from the showerhead andwatering household or landscape plants. Specifically, the device can beused to easily catch the water coming from the shower head so that theleading cold or lukewarm water would not be wasted while waiting forwater with suitable temperature for taking a shower and, aftercollecting the shower water, it can then be easily converted, byattaching a lid (preferably having a spout) to the top opening of thebucket, into a hand-held watering bucket and be used to water household,garden and landscape plants.

The shower water-saving device of the present invention provides a wayof helping households optimize the use of their water, save money andcontribute to the effort of environment protection.

As one embodiment of the present invention, the device comprises a lid,spout and bucket. Different from a conventional watering bucket, the lidand bucket are not integral, but rather two separate pieces.Nonetheless, the lid can be easily, without needing any tools, attachedto the bucket to provide a watertight enclosure covering the top openingof the bucket. The spout may be preferably installed on the lid but itmay be installed on the sidewall of the bucket. The diameter of thebucket may be between 30-50 cm, and the height between 30-60 cm. The lidand bucket may be made of the same or different materials, preferably ofa plastic material, although other materials may also providesatisfactory results.

As another embodiment of the present invention, the device mayoptionally further comprises a funnel, which is configured to beattached to the opening of the bucket for more easily catching the waterfalling from the shower head as it in effect increases the diameter ofthe bucket's top opening for the purpose of collecting water drops. Thefunnel is to be removed from the bucket after collecting the water andbefore attaching the lid to the bucket.

The various features of novelty which characterize the invention arepointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming apart of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention,its operating advantages, and specific objects attained by its use,reference should be made to the drawings and the following descriptionin which there are illustrated and described preferred embodiments ofthe invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1( a)-1(d) show the top, side, bottom and perspective views of anoptional funnel of the shower water-saving device according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2( a)-2(d) show the top, side, bottom and perspective views of alid of the shower water-saving device according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIGS. 3( a)-3(e) show the top, side, bottom and two perspective views ofa bucket of the shower water-saving device according to an embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show the optional funnel being attached to the bucket ofthe shower water-saving device.

FIG. 6 shows the components in a detached state of a shower water-savingdevice according to the present invention, which includes a bucket, alid, and an optional funnel.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show the lid being attached to the bucket of the showerwater-saving device.

FIGS. 9( a) and 9(b) show the bucket of the shower water-saving devicewith a flip top handle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PARTICULAR EMBODIMENTS

With reference to FIGS. 1( a)-3(e), as a particular embodiment of thepresent invention, the shower water-saving device has a bucket 10 whichfor the purpose of this invention defined as a container with a topopening 12, a cover or lid 20 which can be detachably attached to thetop opening 12 of the bucket 10, and an optional detachable funnel 30which can be detachably attached to the top opening 12 of the bucket 10.

The bucket 10 may have a handle 14 on its sidewall, which can be of anyconventional types. A recessed type handle may be provided since it isless obtrusive when used in the shower. A preferred size for the bucket10 is a diameter of about 40 cm and a height of about 50 cm, which cancontain approximately 10 liters of water, an equivalent of a mediumsized watering can. However, this device can be made in any size thatsuits any particular purpose. For example, the diameter may be in therange between 30 cm and 50 cm, and the height between 30 cm and 60 cm.

As shown in FIGS. 2( a)-(d), the lid 20 has a watering spout 22 at oneside and a small opening 24 at the opposite side. This small opening 24provides a vent for the air to come in to release the vacuum created inthe bucket 10 due to the decreased volume of the water inside the bucket10 while watering takes place. Thus the opening 24 allows the water tocome out of the spout 22 easily. When the lid 20 is attached to thebucket 10, this opening 24 on the lid 20 also allows the device to befilled by a hose as it is with a standard watering bucket. The spout 24may be disposed on the sidewall of the bucket 10 but preferably it isdisposed on the lid 20. A long spout can be obtrusive in a small space,such as in a shower or bathroom. Thus it is preferable to install it onthe lid 20, which is less likely to be bought into the shower orbathroom where the bucket 10 is used for collecting the water.

The optional funnel 30 increases the surface area for catching the waterthat falls from the showerhead. It can be used for increasing watercollection efficiency, particularly when the bucket is 30 cm in diameteror less, and it can provide an extra 20 cm or more in diameter for thewater collecting area.

The bucket 10, lid 20, spout 22 and funnel 30 may be made of the same ordifferent materials. Light, hard wearing plastic such as PVC, HDPE, PPor other, are examples of the materials suitable for manufacturing theitems described above, although other materials may also besatisfactorily used.

A screwing mechanism in the form of threads 18, 28, 38 provided on thebucket 10, lid 20 and funnel 30 is used for attachment. Obviously,people with ordinary skill in the art may find other coupling mechanismsalso produce satisfactory results. For example, a clipping mechanism maybe employed. A pad of soft material, such as a soft rubber, may beoperatively coupled to the threads 18, 28, 38 and subject to a degree ofcompression when the lid 20 (or the funnel 30) and the bucket 10 arescrewed together. This soft material pad plays a gasket-like role, whichprovides a watertight seal between the lid 20 (or the funnel 30) andbucket 10 to prevent leakage when the shower water-saving device istilted in order to water plants.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show the shower water-saving device when the lid 20 isattached to the bucket 10 in a state ready for watering. As shown, thevacuum-release opening 24 on the lid 20 is preferably aligned to thebucket's side handle 14 when the device is in a state ready forwatering.

FIGS. 4 and 5 show the shower water-saving device when the optionalfunnel 30 is attached to the bucket 10 in a state ready for collectingshower water. The optional funnel 30 has an upper rim 32 and a lower rim34, which is attachable to and detachable from rim 19 of the bucket 10.

An optional flip top handle 16 is attached to the bucket 10. The fliptop handle 16 helps making the bucket 10 easier to get out of theshower.

When used to collect water from the showerhead, the shower water-savingdevice of the present invention should be configured to be in a statefor collecting water, that is, the bucket 10 without the lid attached.The bucket 10 is then placed beneath the showerhead to catch the leadingcold water while waiting for the water with a temperature suitable fortaking a shower. Optionally, a funnel 30 can be attached to the bucket10, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, to increase the water-catching area,particularly when the top opening 12 of the bucket 10 is relativelysmall. When the bucket 10 collected enough water, from one or moreshowers, the water-saving device can be put in a state for wateringplants by removing the funnel 30, if it is used, from the bucket 10 andthen attaching the lid 20 to the bucket 10, as illustrated in FIG. 6.The water-saving device may then be carried out of the shower orbathroom, preferably by using an optional flip top handle 16, as shownin FIGS. 9( a) and 9(b), and used for watering plants in a manner muchlike a conventional watering can, or emptying water from the bucket 10.

As the components of the shower water-saving device, such as the bucket10, lid 20, spout 22, handle 14, and funnel 30 can be manufactured andput together according to conventional methods known to people in theart, description of their manufacturing processes is unnecessary.

While there have been described and pointed out fundamental novelfeatures of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment thereof,it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions andchanges, in the form and details of the embodiments illustrated, may bemade by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit ofthe invention. The invention is not limited by the embodiments describedabove which are presented as examples only but can be modified invarious ways within the scope of protection defined by the appendedpatent claims.

1. A water-saving device, comprising a bucket with a top opening and asidewall, a spout, and a lid; said top opening having a rim; said lidbeing attachable to and detachable from said rim of said top opening ofsaid bucket; and said spout is either disposed on said lid or disposedon said sidewall of said bucket.
 2. The water saving device of claim 1,wherein said spout is disposed on said lid.
 3. The water saving deviceof claim 1, further comprising a funnel have an upper rim and a lowerrim, which is attachable to and detachable from said rim of said topopening of said bucket.
 4. The water saving device of claim 1, furthercomprising a handle disposed on said sidewall.
 5. The water savingdevice of claim 4, wherein said handle is of a recessed type.
 6. Thewater saving device of claim 1, wherein said bucket has a diameterbetween 30 cm and 50 cm and a height between 30 cm and 60 cm.
 7. Thewater saving device of claim 6, wherein said bucket has a diameter of 40cm and a height of 50 cm.
 8. The water saving device of claim 1, whereinthere is an orifice on said lid to allow passage of the air.
 9. Thewater saving device of claim 1, further comprising a flip top handledisposed at an upper portion of said bucket.
 10. A method of conservingshower water, comprising steps of (a) connecting a funnel with an upperrim and a lower rim to a container with an upper opening having a rim sothat said lower rim of said funnel is in contact with said rim of saidopening of said container; (b) before taking a shower, collectingleading water from a shower head by placing said container below saidshower head to allow an amount of leading water from said shower head tofall through said upper rim of said funnel into said container; and (c)replacing said funnel with a lid by removing said funnel from saidcontainer and connecting said lid to said rim of said opening of saidcontainer so that said container functions like a hand-held wateringbucket.
 11. The method of conserving shower water of claim 10,comprising a further step of (d) taking said container with said lid outof a shower room to a place for watering a plant.
 12. The method ofconserving shower water of claim 10, wherein said container has adiameter between 30 cm and 50 cm and a height between 30 cm and 60 cm.13. The method of conserving shower water of claim 10, wherein saidcontainer has a diameter of 40 cm and a height of 50 cm.